Forever Unbroken
by VampiricAphrodite
Summary: Just like Jo said, you'll never break her. No one can get passed her defenses, especially not some idiotic jock... Right? Right. JoxLightning.


**A/N: This is my third fic with the TDRI campers, and my first TDRI hetero. It's a couple that I personally love, JoxLightning. If you don't like the pairing, then don't read the fic.**

**WARNING: Some language and a bit of angst.**

**Genre: Hurt/Comfort/Romance**

**Pairing: JoxLightning (LightJo?)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Total Drama Revenge of the Island, or any version of "Total Drama".**

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The night air is cool, smelling half-way normal for once. Not so poisoned by nuclear toxins, not polluted by sulfur or smoke or whatever else there is coming out of the Wawanakwa forest.

On the front steps of the cabin, sitting in a slightly hunched-over position, is Jo. She seems to stare off into the night air, her violet eyes blank, a slight frown tugging at her lips. She always seems so composed, both on-screen and off it. She seems unbreakable, and to the world, she _is._

Jo is a rock.

But every once in awhile, when she's alone and the world seems still... When she has time to think about things...

She sighs, thinking about the challenges she's had to endure over the past few days. No one's ever died on _Total Drama._.. Not yet. But it seems like Chris is trying (not that that's a surprising thought).

_She _had come close to death a few challenges ago. But she's Jo, she's uncaring, she's unbroken.

Right? Right.

_Footsteps_. Someone is approaching her, but she doesn't care. A teammate of hers, the boy who calls himself "Lightning", is standing a few steps above her.

"You okay, dude?" he asks.

She holds back a sigh and says, "Yeah, whatever."

Lightning sits next to her, the old stairs creaking as he does so. Jo wonders just how old this summer camp is. Are there ex-Wawanakwa scouts still alive? Do they look back on their summers at camp with fond memories of friends and fun and swimming in the lake?

Do they mind what it's become?

Jo glares at Lightning. "What?"

He only looks confused. She says, "What do you want?"

He shrugs, and she rolls her eyes, looking off into the sky. _So many stars. _She imagines kids running and playing under the endless sky, making smores with non-radioactive marshmellows and searching for constelations. Good memories. Friends. Happiness and smiles at Camp Wawanakwa. The entire scenario sounds laughable and impossible, especially to someone like Jo.

Lightning is staring at her. "Dude, something's wrong. Is it some girl back home?"

Jo scoffs. Her clothing- as well as her athletisicm- is working against her once again. When she was a little girl, people called her a "tomboy", said she would grow out of it. Now she's sixteen years old, never been kissed, with "popular" people like Lightning mistaking her for being a guy.

"Is it a... dude back home?" Lightning asks uncomfortably.

Jo remembers the toxic mines, when she thought she was exposed to radiation and going to die. When she stated that she didn't want to die before kissing a guy, Lightning's eyes had widened. Thinking that /she/ was a man, he said, "Oh! Um... It's cool, man. Lightning don't judge!"

She'd wanted to punch him in the face more than ever in that moment.

"No," she spits, glaring off into the sky again.

Silence for a moment. Then Lightning speaks up and, somewhat randomly, he says, "You know, if you went to my high school, we'd be friends."

Jo blinks. "Really?"

"Yeah! You're one tough dude, and the Lightning can respect that," he says, refering to himself in the third person. _Like a grade A tool_, Jo thinks. Despite the sour thoughts, she's actually flattered. Someone who's popular in their high school- a football star, she's guessing- actually likes her. _Her, _ of all people. It's... nice. A nice thing to say.

"You're not so bad, either," she says, and just for good measure she adds, "for a complete douche bag."

Lightning smacks his lips, seeming annoyed, and she thinks he's about to get up and leave. But when she looks to her right, he's still there, smiling. Like they're joking around. Like pals.

A weaker girl's hands would begin to shake. Not Jo. She remains calm, even when he puts a hand on her shoulder and says, "If you got any problems, you can tell me."

Word vomit. "Sometimes I just feel so _alone_. It's like no one in the world wants to be around me. But then I think, 'hey, it's better than being surrounded by girls who are basically Barbie dolls.' But every once in a while, I just want to talk to _someone _who won't run away. Ugh... It's just... Frustrating."

Lightning squeezes her shoulder. She looks at him, embarresed, one of her precious walls crumbling a little. A crack in her defenses, caused by a _fucking guy._ How humiliating.

"I feel ya," he says with a nod.

"You've felt like that before?"

"Well... No. Everybody loves Lightning," he smiles and shrugs, "But I still kinda get it."

She rolls her eyes, but she's smiling. A wind ruffles her hair. She's smiling and a guy is smiling back and his hand is on her shoulder. And she feels... Not comfortable, really, but almost content.

She wonders how many old campers have had their first kiss in this spot, on the steps she's sitting on.

And Jo looks into Lightning's brown eyes. He's no genius. He's incredibly arrogant and twice as annoying. But he's nice (to her, at least) and comforting and _there_. He's more than any guy has ever been for her.

_Ah, what the hell? _she decides, and Jo leans in with her lips puckered slightly. Her first kiss...

...doesn't happen.

"Woah!" he pulls away, pushing her back. Her lips connect with empty, stupid night air. "Uh... I don't know if I'm givin' you some kind of vibe or something... But Lightning doesn't play for that side of the field."

In other words, "I'm not gay, dude." Because he thinks she's a guy. The first guy to be there for her, and he refuses to acknowledge that she's a fucking girl.

Jo slaps him, her cheeks burning in rage and shame.

"Ow! What'd I do?!" he asks, and she growls, standing and walking back into the cabin.

"Man!" Lightning says, rubbing his cheek, "You're one emotional guy, Jo. Sometimes you're almost like a girl!"

Jo slams the cabin door behind her. Her defenses are already back up. Her wall is already repaired, the cracks that he caused are cemented shut again. And she's already convinced herself that she's crying in anger and nothing more.

And once again, she is unbroken.

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**Sad ending, I know. But I just couldn't see this (realistically) ending any other way. Poor Jo! Review, please.**


End file.
